For the last year or so, my Instagram friend, Silvia has filled my feed with amazing photos of the diverse and dramatic landscapes of the Basque coastline; mystical forests; and a vast array of feathered wildlife. I was completely captivated by her backyard views and overwhelmed with a grateful heart when she invited me to visit and promised me that she would show me all of her favorite places. Autumn seemed a perfect time to visit because that region of Basque Country is blanketed in autumn foliage if you time your visit perfectly. I decided that a week would give me plenty of time to explore San Sebastian and the surrounding area to get a taste of the region. About a week before my arrival, I received a frantic message from Silvia and due to an unforeseen family emergency she had to cancel our plans. With four days slated to be with her, I had to scramble and decide what to do. With a Google map at my fingertips, I located all the locations that Silvia and I were going to visit and within minutes, I had a rental car and a B&B chosen.

After a 10-day visit to the Tuscan region of Italy, my flight from Florence landed on time in Hondarribia. I stepped off the plane onto Basque Country and within a few minutes I had my bag, my rental car, and I was headed down the freeway. My B&B was located in the village of Azkoitia, an hour away from the airport and situated halfway between San Sebastian and Bilboa. I arrived in the middle of a rainstorm and my rental car’s GPS couldn’t locate my B&B. Google Maps wasn’t much help either as it took me around the same block three times and I realized I needed to stop and ask for help. I pulled into a gas station and asked the guy filling his car if he could help. He didn’t speak English...which was expected but what I didn’t anticipate was for him to open his car’s passenger door and after a quick exchange with his wife and a lot of head and hand gestures, he prompted me to follow them. Ten minutes later, down a hill away from town and then up and up and further up a mountain sat one house...MY house!!! The wife jumped out of the car and gave me a hug and they drove off...seriously...my travel angel needs a raise.

I can only communicate with my B&B host, Itxaro through Google Translate. She speaks into the app in Basque and then I reply in English. We smile and laugh and she nods a lot. At breakfast the next morning, I sit at the end of a table from a young couple from Madrid who don’t speak English either. They smile and pass me the butter and go back to soft chatter. Breakfast is orange juice, muffins, hot chocolate, toast, and homemade jam. The muffin is a delicious vanilla cake that I smeared with berry jam and I inhaled it in two bites. A few minutes, later, the hostess comes into the dining room with a plate and realizes that I have eaten the couple’s muffin...two seconds later... I REALIZE I HAVE EATEN THEIR MUFFIN. The couple is so gracious and the host apologizes to me for being late with my breakfast. This is just the first 12 hours in a country that in daylight is covered in tall trees, a mountain range that goes on and on and even though I never know what I’m ordering from the menu it is always fresh, beautiful, and delicious.

Every night, I eat at the same little bar in Azkoitia – Restaurante Bai Batzokia. I stand out in this place where locals old and young meet their friends at the end of the day for a bite and a glass of wine. The place is tiny but the volume of chatter was loud, warm, and full of laughter. The same waitress, Marina would patiently use hand gestures to describe what was available and on the second night she drew an octopus on the back of a napkin. I laughed shaking my head in a definite “no.” She chuckled and then drew what appeared to be a hamburger.

On the third night, Marina did not bring me a menu but smiled and motioned for me to sit down. A few minutes later, she brought out my “coke with a lemon slice” and a beautiful plate piled high with fried cod, fries, and a salad. It was delicious! On my last night, I tried to explain that it was my last night. She actually looked a little sad to see me leave. She blushed when I asked her if I could take her photo. I think this smile, I captured was the only one that I saw on her face on any of my visits. She is a hard working lady, always on her feet, and the last one out the door.

I know because a couple of nights, I was the last customer but she never rushed me and I think that my return visits meant something to her.

I really did not know what to expect Basque Country to look like. I had seen photos of San Sebastian and knew that it would be a resort town with a lovely coastline. The mountains caught me by surprise and as I drove up and around them it struck me just how beautiful this part of the world is. I drove as far as west as Bilboa; south to Vitoria-Gasteiz; and the furthest east I drove was Hondarribia.

In four days, I ticked off close to 900 km. The highway system in this area is marvelous but I didn’t limit myself to just the major highways. With plenty of time to explore, I found myself on more than my fair share of dirt roads – each time, a nice surprise at the end of it.

The two places that I wanted to photograph were the Flysch Rocks in Zumaia, a small beach village. Flysch Rocks are sedimentary rock layers that are created as shale and sandstone are deposited and form a deep basin, the water flow forces the shale to fold over creating thin walls of sandstone that stretch out into long grooves. The stretch of flysch in Zumaia are considered to be the longest set of continuous rock strata in the world dating back over 100 million years. These Flysch Rocks are intensely dramatic and if you’re a Game of Thrones fan, you’ll recognize them as Dragonstone. No dragons were spotted during my visit but I understand the locals call the rutted rocks “dinosaur tails.”

The other spot I came to Basque Country to see is called Hayedo de Otzaarreta or what I’m calling the ”Enchanted Forest” — known for a running brook under the canopy of Beech Trees, I had hoped to catch the leaves as they turned orange and red but the first batch were taken down by an earlier rain storm which made a lovely red carpet across the forest floor. Even after two trips to this forest, I’d still like to return. On my first visit, I met Olga and her daughters who are makeup and costume models. It’s quite a jaw-dropper to be standing in a forest and looking over to see a woman dressed up as a witch. Within a few minutes, Olga invites me to visit her city, Vitoria-Gasteiz, the capital of Basque Country. Two days later, I met her outside the art museum and within a few blocks I got a taste of this beautiful city. Vitoria is big but doesn’t feel big and is full of interesting streets. Olga’s father opened the first bicycle shop here called Ciclo Sport in 1939. Her brother, William runs the original shop and her sister, Rakel manages a second location. After a leisurely walk around Vitoria-Gasteiz with Olga, you feel like you’ve known it forever.

As I was leaving Vitoria-Gasteiz, the rain caught up with me but it was too early to head back to my B&B, so I kept driving and ended up at Gaztelugatxe an islet in the Bay of Biscay. On top of the island, stands a little church dating back to the 10th century dedicated to John the Baptist. As you hike to the island, the trail is paved and mostly downhill, I managed to get about a third of the way down the trail before the rain began, it didn’t take long for the paved trail to become too slippery for me to continue. I remember thinking that the rain was a blessing because as I retraced my steps --- it was all uphill and I was drenched by the time I reached my car. According to legend, after the strenuous climb to the top of the cliff, you should ring the bell three times and make a wish. I never made it to the top, but I will keep it on my list for a return visit.

On my last night, I ventured down a road that I assumed would loop around at some point --- but it did not. I ended up in a farmer’s front yard and instead of doing a u-turn, I got out and said “hello” – and tried to explain that I was turning around. He was confused but I thought it was the polite thing to do. As I was talking to him, my eye was drawn to a stream bed running through his front yard. Following it upwards, I realized there was a waterfall at the top of his property that fed into the stream in his front yard and I had followed along the road that led to his house. It was the first and only waterfall I found in Basque Country and with hand gestures of clicking an imaginary camera, I asked him if I could take a photo. “Bai Bai” which I took as a “yes” as he nodded. He went back and fiddled on his tractor and after a dozen or so shots, he came over and motioned me to follow him up the hill.

It was wet and slippery but he wanted me to see the top of the waterfall. It still makes me smile because he started telling me a story using his hands and what I could gather is that the water came off the mountain 600 meters above us, and it runs down the falls, into his gardens and then feeds into a river somewhere “over there” --- the lesson for me on this day is that a dead end road should be explored every once in a while.

English is hard to come by in this little region near Azkoitia, but I didn’t mind and I think I’m getting better at charades. I went into the local pharmacy and with a “pretend” cough – the pharmacist knew exactly what to give me. Everyone that I have met here that has spoken English to me has apologized for how “bad” their English is ...to be honest, their English is fine it’s my Basque that needs some work. With a little Google translation we are communicating and what we don’t understand we just smile and shake our heads. My Basque friends in Zurich were concerned that I would be lonely or isolated because no one in the area would be able to speak to me. It was actually quite refreshing to communicate in smiles and head nods.

A few years ago, while exploring Mont Blanc near Chamonix, France. I met several university students from St. Etienne. Each now accomplished in their chosen field, they are spread across Europe and through social media, it is easy to keep up with them. It was on that mountain that I first met my first Basque friend. Inaki grew up in San Sebastian and to hear him talk about his beloved country you can feel the pride he has for it and his willingness to show me his city has been a priceless experience. Up until meeting Inaki, I wasn’t familiar with the Basque region located in northern Spain and southern France. San Sebastian sits along the Bay of Biscay which eventually feeds into the North Atlantic Ocean.

I am not the first person to say this but San Sebastian is an absolute gem. During the summer, the beaches are filled with sun worshipers and the streets are full of tourists.

Sardines and apple cider for breakfast - Yes, please!

But in October, there aren’t as many tourists but the promenade along La Concha Beach is dotted with locals enjoying a sunny day. Pintxo bars are full of friendly locals and fantastic food. So many different varieties of pintxos, the colors, the smells, the tastes are memories that will stay with me for a long time. Sampling pintxos from several different places in one evening is something that was fun and capping it off with a slab of delicious cheesecake and meeting Inaki’s friends in the city’s center will be one of my favorite experiences here in San Sebastian.

A week is not enough time in this region…but it offered a wonderful sampling of the natural beauty of the land; vast array of culinary art and most importantly, the genuine pride that its people have for their country.

They are the heart of Basque Country. Their kindness is genuine and even though I didn’t speak their language a brief moment of sharing a bite of sardines and apple cider with locals (friends of Inaki’s father) will be a memory I cherish.

Basque Country in Focus

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